- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS-
Hawkesbury Visitor Economy Business Mentoring Program
APPLICATION PROCESS
How many spots are available?
Spots are open to support and empower 7 business owners to help them optimise their business.
Who is eligible to apply?
The Program is being offered to existing businesses as well as start-ups that have a business idea and have a registered ABN located in the Hawkesbury City Council Local Government Area that will support the development of the Hawkesbury destination.
Start-ups are eligible to participate in the Program if they have a registered ABN and can demonstrate a commitment to running a business in the region with some level of business planning underway. Participants do not need to be tourism operators, and can be any type of business that will support the development of the destination.
How long will the application take to complete?
The application form is completed online and shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes to complete. Please ensure you provide as much detail as possible to give your application the best chance of succeeding.
When do applications close?
Applications closed on Friday 29th April 2022.
How long will it take to find out if I am successful?
All applicants will be contacted within three weeks of applications closing and informed whether they were successful or not.
What are the next steps if I am successful?
If successful, you will be called and notified. Then you will receive a Letter of Engagement which includes an overview of the Program and expectations. The Letter will need to be acknowledged in a reply email to confirm your spot in the Program. Upon receiving your confirmation we will be in touch to schedule your first mentoring session.
THE PROGRAM
How much will the Program cost me?
Hawkesbury City Council is funding this program under a successful Bushfire Local Economic Recovery Grant to allow the mentoring to be offered free of charge to successful applicants.
When will the Program be running?
Once onboarded, the mentoring will be delivered between May and September 2022. Below are the dates of each group mentoring session. You must be availbale on these dates and times to be eligible for the program.
How will the Program be delivered?
The Program has been designed to be a mixture of group and one-on-one sessions. It will include a deep business review followed by the mentoring sessions tailored for your business needs. Supporting the mentoring, mentees will have access to a suite of practical workshop style webinars, tools and resources as well as ongoing support from your mentor throughout the Program.
Here is a snapshot of the Program and what it includes.
Who is delivering the Program?
The Visitor Economy Business Group Mentoring Program will be facilitated by independent mentors, business and tourism experts, Sparrowly Group. Sparrowly Group has deep experience in building and growing destinations and businesses across Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia.
What are the expected outcomes from the Program?
The outcomes will be defined on an individual-mentee basis upon your own goal setting. Following the Business Review, you will craft a bespoke plan and program to suit you and your business needs. As a guide, you will:
set clear business goals for the Program
build a robust business toolkit to roll out in your individual business
develop a clear business plan on a page using the Business Model Canvas
develop a clear roadmap of plans for the following 6 - 12 months once the Program concludes
complete a start of Program and an end of Program survey to understand how far you have come.
What is a typical mentee journey from the Program and what would be the touchpoints with my mentor?
You will first have one Business Review session to deep dive into your business to understand your challenges and goals. From there you and your mentor will plan a tailored journey across the five mentoring sessions. The journey will be different for each business.
Groups session will require you to watch a video recording and then submit questions/discussion points for the group mentoring session for later in the week. The sessions will be a fortnight apart and action points will be taken away for you to work on after each session. Each group session will give you a chance to meet and learn from and share with other Hawkesbury based businesses.
The one-on-one training will give your businesses the chance to work on specific areas with a mentor.
Your mentor can always be reached in between mentoring sessions for any questions via email or phone, or to review your business actions. A Facebook group is available for mentees to keep up to date on all news, network with other mentors and other local mentees and businesses across Australia that have participated in previous mentoring.
What level of commitment is required from the Program?
When you are accepted into the Program, you will receive a Letter of Engagement that outlines the expectations for the Program for both the mentee and mentor, which you will need to return with acknowledgement. This includes agreeing to provide requested information, working through business actions, attending meetings on time and most importantly being prepared to step outside of your comfort zone.
In regards to the time commitment, this Program will involve you committing time away from your business (approx. 2 hours per week on average) to work on agreed business actions and mentoring sessions.